Two strong images are linked to self-employment: self-employed people work long hours without complaint, but, then again, they can choose what they do and when they do it. Overstress may easily start showing in your lifestyle. You do not get enough sleep, you give up exercising, you start eating less healthy and you may start using more intoxicants.
In its basic nature, self-employment entails a majority of the commonly known psychosocial stress factors:
- Unclear work goals
- Too much work, a constant hurry, missing deadlines, producing low-quality work due to time pressure
- Lack of self-control regarding the amount and pace of work and working hours, work mixing into free time
- Too little work, work that is not challenging enough
- No opportunities for development or learning new things
- Lack of feedback and/or appreciation
- Problems with cooperation and difficult social relationships
- Working alone, isolation
- Poor communication
- Unequal treatment
- Bad workplace behaviour and inappropriate treatment from others
- Problems with organising work